Get to the Saturday morning swap meet at least an hour before it starts for the good stuff.

Perry's Steakhouse across the street for the pork chop lunch special on Friday. Meat candy.

Come to the TWIPYs on Sat night! https://twipys.com/

Get there early.

And bathe.

And wash your hands.

Bring a bottle of sanitizer and put it on your belt so you aren't getting booger, spit, sweat, and poo poo particles on your hands from people that don't know to wash their hands after wiping their ass.

Hard Eight BBQ - Yum!

Sure is. Lockhart is another good one. A trip to buccees is always an adventure too.

I recommend a stop at the National Videogame Museum.
They usually have a shuttle bus running to/from it.

Check out the CGC booth.

Stop by jjp booth and ask when they are getting LTG : ) Back.

Bring food or plan time to go away and get food. The food at the convention center sucks and is $$$$$$.

Attend a seminar or two.

Watch a little of the tournament in the spectators room.

Play some older games, don’t just stand in line for the new games all day. Find a game you’ve never played before and play it.

Check out the mod makers, their booths are awesome and I’ve always found plenty of cool people to talk to.

Take a break now and again, walk to a local place for lunch (can confirm the food there is overpriced and terrible). Food truck food is ok.

Have fun!

Mr. Sushi in Dallas. It's worth the drive.

http://www.mrsushidallas.com/

I have to agree with this one, the pork chop is darn good.

National Videogame Museum

http://www.nvmusa.org

Definitely hit up the meet and greet and say hello to all the vendors.

Don't be a Bally/Williams/stern snob play games that don't get love like gottlieb system 3s and mylstars.

Just came here to give some advice.... I live 3 miles away from TPF.... this is my home area

1. Perry's pork chop on Friday lunch---- Do not miss this, or you'll pay triple price at dinner for the same plate (5 min walk across the street from the hotel)

2. There is a massive mall (Stonebriar) across from the hotel (5 min walk).... They have a massive food court, and any shop you could need to grab a necessity you forgot. There is also a Super Target, Best Buy, and TJ Maxx in the same area

3. You are within a 5 min drive/shuttle/Uber to about 90 different restaurants. Everything from high end steakhouses, to fast food. If you don't have a car, you can walk to any of the restaurants that ring the mall area. None should be more than a 15 min walk from your room to the front door .........Chilis, Jimmy Johns, Jasons Deli, EG Steak, La Madeleine, Normas Mexican, Platia Greek, Piada Italian Street, Tourchys Tacos, Chef Chen Chinese, Olive Garden, In N Out, IHOP, Wingstop, Red Lobster, Wild Pitch (Hooters knockoff with skimpier outfits)

4. If you want high end nightlife, hit up Shops at Legacy, expect higher pricing here too (5 min Uber). There are a bunch of patio bars, and little shops to walk around...........Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Mexican Sugar, Flemings, Sambuca 360, Del Friscos, CRU wine bar, Bob's Steak & Chop House

5. Take a visit to The Star (Dallas Cowboys Headquarters, also just a 5 min Uber away).... There are another 15-20 restaurants in this area as well, all within 2-5 min walk (Best brunch area in Frisco)

6. While everything is "close by" in terms of Texas perception, you'll still want an Uber/shuttle/car to do most things. You won't be more than a 5 min ride away, but it'll still be across two highways, and 2-3 miles

7. The National Video Game museum is about a 10-15 min shuttle ride from TPF (they usually have a shuttle, uber is fine too)

If I can help out, or maybe provide a ride, let me know! I'll be there most of the weekend when I don't retreat to my own house for sanity's sake

Spec's (liquor store 5 min away) will be where you search for bottles of this

DONT DRINK AND DRIVE.

If you think that you can drive or cant drive after a couple of drinks, you hand the keys to someone else.

If you can't handle those kind of beverages just cut out the booze and stick to Virgin drinks and sodas.

Just avoid booze like me. Sober since My mom brought me into the world 26 years ago.

Booze and Pinball need to unmarry themselves.

Wild Pitch!
See you there!

Check out the customized and rethemed machines; TPF has more homebrew games than any other show.

If you haven't tried Cattleack BBQ yet, I highly recommend it. Only open thursday, Friday, and the first Saturday of the month, and only for lunch. Be prepared for an absurdly long line, but it's worth it.

go downtown, check out the assassination tour of jfk

Is Friday still lingerie party time?

Don’t know, but I’ll let you know on Sat!

Seems like we have a lot in common...I work about a block from Cattleack BBQ...and I went to high school in Paramus!

DO Your own thing. Just go and explore. ignore all suggestions as good as they may be and just get lost there and have your own adventure. Maybe I'll go next year, maybe not, but if I do that's how I'll do it. Don't bring a checklist!

Our waitress

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Hutchins BBQ isn’t too far away and is top notch. The best BBQ joint in the immediate area.

Is there a post on that?

Great post! I had to look McKinney Texas up to see how large the population was to be able to service all those restaurants… only 200K people. All of those options in such a small radius is amazing. Must pull from Dallas and surrounding area?

JJ from Games Exchange will post details soon.

I suggest Cowboy Chicken or if you are willing to drive a little further Hard Eight BBQ.

Volunteer
https://texaspinball.com/tpf/volunteer/

Stupid question: Do I need to purchase tickets in advance or at the door?

Disregard I found it. See you all there.

The area is very wealthy with average household income $165k and median household income $134k. And right next to it is Plano with North Plano being just as wealthy if not more. It has a large concentration of corporate employers and is a shopping destination in the area. I don’t think it draws a lot of people from Dallas (it’s too far away and unless someone just has to shop at NFM or Ikea, you can find most of the same restaurants etc. closer to Dallas).

Check out Pulp Fiction in the CGC booth.

See God Father in the jjp booth and ask where LTG : ) is.

TPF is extremely well supported by local collectors. All shows have a few troubled games, but TPF has an abundance of beautifully restored EMs, SS and 90s games. Take the time to stop and see the craftsmanship. The owners are there and beaming with happiness as you enjoy their games.

I will personally have my Gottlieb C 37 and Astro there. Restored by people with better skills than me, but proudly presented for enjoyment.

Also, stop by the tournament room. I’m not a tourney player, but there are plenty of nice folks and hard working volunteers there as well.

Wellllll.... the show is over and I'm in town for another couple days. Any places to play pinball nearby?

There is Arcade92 in McKinney. They have most of the recent Stern machines (including a JamesBond).

Awesome, will check it out. Thanks!

Dallas Cidercade is another good spot too.

Nice! Will check it out as well!